Then decide from there who your going with and just stay the course with them.

There’s another challenge you need to be aware of should you ask the owner to finance or perhaps even just co-finance a renovation.

I see no reason for anything other than that unless there is some law or something that I am not aware of 

Crosby I would just let them stay if otherwise they are a great tenant, they have been there for 4 years and to be honest any damage that it will do has been done and it won't matter if they stop now.

From my post I am sure you are aware that using contracts to broker in Florida and circumvent licensing law is not legal.

The owners would like to stay in the property and rent.  

I stay away from all the market type stuff where they are shopping the asset and sitting on it trying to throw tons of buyers in to push the highest price.

Also you need to be aware of min loan amounts and make sure the properties fall w/ in that.

Are there any pitfalls/ contingencies/information I should definitely be aware of before considering this route? 

If it hasn't been mentioned previously, one area that I often advise out-of-state investors is to be aware of the property tax rate for non-homestead, and factoring in the higher tax rate when running your numbers.